Athletes
Brady Hiestand | ‘Bam Bam’ Amped Up For Team’s Big Week
Returning Bantamweight Talks Journey Back To Octagon, Huge Week For Team In Las Vegas, Facing Rinya Nakamura
UFC President Dana White once famously said that “fighting is in our DNA,” and over the last couple of years, bantamweight prospect Brady Hiestand has come to realize how true that statement is for himself.
After landing on the wrong side of a split decision verdict in the Ultimate Fighter Season 29 bantamweight finale, the Spokane, Washington native strung together three straight wins to begin his UFC career, showing heart and toughness to rally and defeat Fernie Garcia before collecting third-round finishes of Danaa Batgerel and Garrett Armfield in similar “find a way” fashion, the last of which earned him a Performance of the Night bonus.
Everything was trending in the right direction, and his next fight was booked for the fall of 2024, but then things went sideways.
Watch Every UFC Event On Paramount+
“Honestly, right at the beginning when it first happened, I was like ‘F*** it! I’m gonna get a different job! F*** this!’” Hiestand said with a laugh ahead of his return against Rinya Nakamura in Las Vegas. “I’d already had an ACL surgery, so this was the second one, and it’s like, ‘Damn! This sucks!’ I love fighting, I love the feeling of being a high-level athlete, but these surgeries are terrible.
“Mentally it was harder than any part of it physically, but luckily, I have a good support system at home — good fiancée, good brother, good mom, good friends, good teammates. I was in the gym training as much as I could, and once I came back, I fell in love with it again. I think this is just what’s in my DNA —it’s just what I do —so no matter how many times I run away from it or my knees give out, it’s just something I’m gonna do until I’m too old.”
As much as it might very well be in his DNA, it feels like it’s also something that runs through his hometown of Spokane as well, and this week in Las Vegas is a perfect representation of that.
Tuesday night, his teammate Jaden Ortega turned in a gutsy effort in defeat on Dana White’s Contender Series, earning a contract, nonetheless. Friday night, another teammate, Devon Jackson, who handed current UFC flyweight champ Joshua Van the first loss of his career, battles for the Tuff-N-Uff title, and then Saturday, Hiestand will be followed into the Octagon by another teammate, Melissa Amaya, who looks to become the third member of the small Washington state team to win The Ultimate Fighter when she battles fellow Team Cormier representative Tina Black in the Season 34 finale.
So what gives?
MORE UFC FIGHT NIGHT: The Yamato-Damashii of Rinya Nakamura | Get To Know Luis Hernandez Ahead Of His Short-Notice UFC Debut | Norma Dumont Is Finally Getting Her Wish | Ailin Perez: ‘I’m Gonna Get That Title’
“I think there is something in the aquifer up there,” joked Hiestand. “Maybe just enough lead to make us a little crazy, but not enough to make us sick. I think the reason our gym has so much success is because we’re all very similar: we all have traumas in our life that make us tough. I have a mom who raised me and my brother — she was kicked out on her own when she was 15, and now she’s a nurse practitioner; worked three jobs, didn’t take any s***, and made us tough.
“I think coming to (Sikjitsu), if you’re not tough and you don’t have that mentality, you’re not gonna fit in. The training is tough, the way we handle situations, handle fights just makes you tougher, and it’s a blue-collar town; it’s rough and tough. It gets cold as f*** in the winter and it’s not fun going into a garage with a little tiny space-heater and it’s 20 degrees outside/ There are little things that have nothing to do with the training that just make you tough coming from Sikjitsu and Spokane.”
Brady Hiestand Stops Batgerel Danaa In The Third Round | UFC Fight Night Pavlovich vs Blaydes
Unlock MORE of your inner combat sports fan with UFC Fight Pass! Fighting is what we live for. And no one brings you MORE live fights, new shows, and events across multiple combat sports from around the world. With a never-ending supply of fighting in every discipline, there`s always something new to watch. Leave it to the world`s authority in MMA to bring you the Ultimate 24/7 platform for MORE combat sports, UFC Fight Pass!
Brady Hiestand Stops Batgerel Danaa In The Third Round | UFC Fight Night Pavlovich vs Blaydes
/
And that shared toughness, shared mentality makes moments like this where four members of the team are in pivotal fights at the same time even more enjoyable and motivating for everyone involved.
“Everyone is motivated, everyone is dialled. Chiesa and Rick (Little) are in both of our corners, and we’re back-to-back, so that’s gonna be a little stressful, but it’s also great having somebody that’s on the journey (with you).
POLYMARKET UFC 334: Ciryl Gane Undisputed And Ready To Defend | Tickets On Sale Now
“We have such a small gym —I think we have 10-15 people total coming into that gym, and the fact that out of those 10-15 people, four of them are in the UFC right now and we’re gonna have some more coming up soon shows how dialed we are, the mentality of our gym.
“I’m so excited to be a part of this,” Hiestand added. “There was a whole generation with Mike Chiesa, Julianna Peña, Austin Arnett, Sam Sicilia —they were the first generation, and I feel like we’re the next one.”
Because he has been out of action for the last two years, it’s easy to forget that Hiestand has always shown — multiple times over —that he can succeed at this level. That being said, the returning prospect feels like a significantly different fighter as he readies to make the walk on Saturday and face off with Nakamura than he did during his first three appearances inside the Octagon.
“My body feels 100 percent, my skills have improved, I feel like I’m a completely different level of fighter,” Hiestand said. “Everything happens for a reason, so I think it’s good that I’m coming back now against Rinya.
“I think my striking and comfort on the feet is really what’s gonna show in this fight,” he said. “I came into the UFC with terrible striking: I would go out there, slang’em, take you down, and choke you out; that was my whole Ultimate Fighter run. I was like Chiesa; he looked the same way.
ZUFFA BOXING 11: Fight By Fight Preview | How To Watch In Your Country | Cutler Onwards And Upwards
“I feel like now we’ve spent a lot of time working on my hands, my hand speed, working on my timing, and mixing it all together, and I think that is what’s really going to show is me being a well-rounded fighter with elite-level grappling, especially now that I’ve gotta go against this Olympic-level wrestler.”
Though Nakamura didn’t reach his Olympic dreams after COVID delayed the 2020 Summer Games, the 31-year-old Japanese standout was world-class talent on the mats before transitioning to MMA, and has been impressive over his first dozen fights, posting an 11-1 record with six knockouts and one submission, and a 3-1 mark in the Octagon.
After accepting that walking away from the sport wasn’t a real option for him, Hiestand has been all-in on making this return, and now that it’s only a couple of days away, he aims to concentrate on the basics, certain that if he does that, he’ll get his hand raised this weekend.
“I just make sure I focus on the game plan, focus on what we’ve been working on, and keeping it simple,” he said. “I fight crazy, and I feel like I have a high pace no matter what, but if I just remember the basics —hand position, stance — and I put a pace on this guy, he’s gonna break. I believe that in my heart, and now I just have to go out there and show it.
FIGHT WEEK INTERVIEWS: Ailin Perez | Tina Black | Ilimbek Akylbek
“I wanna go out there and get a finish,” continued Hiestand. “I want a bonus — they’re a little bigger now, so I’d really like that — but I think just going out there and being the best version of myself, performing like I know I can, will make me happy. Win, lose, or draw, I’m gonna be happy, but I know I’m not going to be content with my performance if I don’t go out there and perform the best I can. I know if I do that, I beat this guy 10 times outta 10.”
Should all of that come to pass on Saturday and he makes a triumphant return to action, is there anything specific Hiestand hopes to hear from fans and observers come Sunday morning?
“He’s back, baby!” he said with a smile and a laugh.
Indeed, he is.
Welcome back, Brady.
UFC Fight Night: Rosas Jr. vs Barcelos took place live from Meta APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 26, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!